TOLERANCE: Not what you think

Just a word about tolerance as an afterthought to Tom Hamilton’s 2,800 word speech printed in The Press. Tolerance is not about having to believe what someone else believes or living the way someone else lives. And it’s not about pretending you agree when you don’t.

It’s about the fact that you live in a world with other people. Tolerance stems from having a sense of perspective about the actual impact someone else’s belief or act has on you personally. Not the emotional reaction — the actual impact.

None of us is completely free for the obvious reason that our actions affect others. Tolerance is not advocacy. Tolerating something does not mean you are promoting it. Tolerance is a necessary ingredient in making civilization “civil.”

Laws and courts are just the backup system to something that works much better: Self-discipline guided by the objective of mutual benefit. Live, and let live. It’s called common courtesy.

STEPHEN BRUNO

Hayden